Henry Lee Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 Being a Atari collector with a full time job and extra contracts. I don't remember when was the last time I sat down and connected my Atari 5200. Yesterday I did. The non-centering controllers: We have read multitude pf comments about these darn non-centering controllers. Exaggeration! I played Pac-Man Jr for hours. I never got tired of having them in my hand and I like the soft feel when you push the controller into a direction. Except for a few games like Pitfall... try to stay on those alligators. Let me tell you these controllers are perfect with the majority of the A5200 library. The only flaw use to be the maintenance but with the new gold dots and circuit. Well? Think about it. In a an earlier thread, there was talk that the controllers was the reason of 5200's downfall. Niet, It was one of its all new attractions and still is. the track-ball: Centipede, Millipede and the trak-ball. The best early 80's arcade experience. I won't mention the other titles that rock with the enchanted ball. My point: Yes, the Atari 5200 started with a very out-dated but perfectly converted from the arcade library. The actual playing experience made the difference and "the giant leap" over probably the A2600 and Intellivision at the time of its release. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetset Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 Being a Atari collector with a full time job and extra contracts.I don't remember when was the last time I sat down and connected my Atari 5200. Yesterday I did. The non-centering controllers: We have read multitude pf comments about these darn non-centering controllers. Exaggeration! I played Pac-Man Jr for hours. I never got tired of having them in my hand and I like the soft feel when you push the controller into a direction. Except for a few games like Pitfall... try to stay on those alligators. Let me tell you these controllers are perfect with the majority of the A5200 library. The only flaw use to be the maintenance but with the new gold dots and circuit. Well? Think about it. In a an earlier thread, there was talk that the controllers was the reason of 5200's downfall. Niet, It was one of its all new attractions and still is. the track-ball: Centipede, Millipede and the trak-ball. The best early 80's arcade experience. I won't mention the other titles that rock with the enchanted ball. My point: Yes, the Atari 5200 started with a very out-dated but perfectly converted from the arcade library. The actual playing experience made the difference and "the giant leap" over probably the A2600 and Intellivision at the time of its release. THANK YOU! You are 100% correct in everything you said. I NEVER NEVER had problems with the non self centering sticks. The games people bitch about the most (Pacman, Ms Pacman, etc) are the BEST with the stock controllers. I attribute the bitching about them to gamers who just cant play the games. It's easy to blame the controller... True, the squishy fire buttons were always a downer to me. And as to the 5200's downfall....BAH! What downfall? The brief on that EVERY videogame system experienced in the mid 80's?? Is that why there are multiple homebrews and new hardware/controllers being worked on? How many homebrews are there currently for the Colecovision? The 7800? And plans to make a redemption adapter for the Intellivision??? Still THE best system ever. End. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goochman Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Confucious says A good carpenter doesnt blame his tools, but then again he wasnt given a fisher price hammer to build a deck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeybastard Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 My problem with the sticks was never the self-centering. It's the mushy fire buttons I don't like. The 5200 tracball is excellent. Missile Command and Centipede are great fun with it. I like it on Space Invaders too since thew 5200 Space Invaders is not like the arcade, I don't mind using a completely different control for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rxd Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 The only problem I ever had with the 5200 controllers was their durability. In fact they are my favorite controllers from any system at that time. Did they suck? No. Did they break? Unfortunately yes... But as you said, ever since I got the new gold plated contacts controllers I love them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobra Kai Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 In 1983 those 5200 sticks were state of the art...however, I never cared for the mushy buttons...they make you think you need to push harder than needed. Also, the position of the fire buttons is the worst feature...nothing can come from the design of the 5200 stick other than hand cramps, and I couldn't believe Atari followed this design with the 7800 sticks...blech... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacob Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 I spent soooo much time looking for some wico sticks to make the 5200 experience better. When I finally found a pair - I realized nothing beats the originals when properly maintained (yes I admit it does take MAJOR upkeep to have working 5200 controllers, or major bucks for gold dots & various other replacement parts) what I finally did was take the controllers I had & cleaned them up really good & used double-stick tape & aluminum foil & cut my own dots with a hole punch & fit them over the old carbon dots on all the buttons - I have not had any problems since then & I've actually put the wico's in a box & haven't used them since. The 5200 is not a 5200 without those controllers - unless you got a track-ball!! (which still eludes me by the way) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferris Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 With regards to mush buttons..... I completely agree with everything Henry Lee said. The 5200, when working properly, provides for one hell of a game experience circa 1982. That was the muscle car of game systems in its day, and the joysticks were slick, innovative and comfortable. With modern advancements in gold contacts etc. the joysticks have gotten better... however the main drawback in my opinion are the mushy fire buttons. It's confusing having two on each end too. A few years ago I took some inspiration from my Neo Geo and its arcade style joysticks and cannibalized a 5200 joystick and a trak-ball that still had the pink film on the nameplate but had serious damage to the ball mech its self. Long story short I pulled the ball mech out of the trak-ball and replaced it with the joystick mech from the joystick its self. Just slipped the boot up inside the hole for the ball and wired everything together the right way and before you know it i had an arcade-style joystick with nice firm plastic buttons that could sit on my lap as I play. It was wonderful. I highly suggest this project to anyone out there looking for a fun 5200 hardware hack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NE146 Posted October 16, 2004 Share Posted October 16, 2004 aah the good old recurrent topic Again, as I've said many times I've never had any problems with the 5200 controllers as far as actual control goes. My problem when I was 12 was that they BROKE! I went through about six before I couldn't find them in the stores anymore. As a result there were many years where I couldn't even START many a game because all my start buttons wouldn't work (yes I learned how to fix this years later) But of course in retrospect that's what I guess ended up making the 5200 the favorite of all my vids The mystery! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 I agree with what is being collectively stated here; I have always enjoyed the 5200 and not had problems with the controllers -- when they are working ,that is. The mushy buttons don't usually bother me; but on some games, my hand cramps from pressing the buttons too much. I prefer games where you can hold the lower button in, no probs then! The analog stick -- I probably always had the 2nd gen sticks ,with extra rubber around the stick, which kind of aids in centering. I have never had a problem with playing Pac-Man. Control in Q*bert was always perfect for me, better than the digital-sticks systems which made you turn the sticks clockwise to get the diagonal controls! Just let go of the button when you want to stop, it's easy. I like the comment above that the 5200 was the 'muscle car of consoles' back then; that's how I always felt. 5200 was red-hot in its day and still holds up nicely. For the few games where the analog stick isn't that great, just get a Masterplay, or Wico, or an AtariAge Redemption. It's a non-issue! There are no other systems where you can play Centipede and Missile Command with a quality well-tuned trak-ball, like on 5200. That's part of the 5200 mystique and experience, owning a trak-ball and those two games. People cry out that 8bit is superior, but I prefer the 5200. Maybe it's the cool cart design. Maybe its the 1980's-futuristic design. Maybe its the unique controllers. Probably is all these and a really cool library! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobra Kai Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 I'm gonna disagree that a working 5200 stick is the best option....however I'll agree that it is better than the Wico controller....but nothing can compare to the Competition Pro Joystick for the 5200. Once I got one of these my high scores went up up and away! And no more hand cramps either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferris Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Can anybody post a side-by-side comparison of the first and second generation 5200 Joysticks in high-resolution? I know the rubber is thicker and it helps a bit with centering and I've heard that the stalk is shorter on the second gen, but I've never seen the two compared. I'm not sure which generation I have. Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetset Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 I'm gonna disagree that a working 5200 stick is the best option....however I'll agree that it is better than the Wico controller....but nothing can compare to the Competition Pro Joystick for the 5200. Once I got one of these my high scores went up up and away! And no more hand cramps either And Im gonna disagree with you on the comp pro. To a point... The comp pro, for control is a good alternative, however the placing of the 2nd firing button makes games like Moon Patrol, Defender, hell, ANY game that needs the 2nd fire button totally unplayable. I tried training my right pinky to press it while holding onto the stick...no dice. I tried reaching my left hand around to the right without completely losing control of my direction...no dice. Now, that said...if you happen to get Donkey Kong either on a cart, or play the rom via the A52 Maxi cart...it's AWESOME! Almost as identical of an experience as playing the real thing as to Centipede with the trackball, or Robotron with the joystick coupler. Absolutely great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Lee Posted October 17, 2004 Author Share Posted October 17, 2004 Can anybody post a side-by-side comparison of the first and second generation 5200 Joysticks in high-resolution? I know the rubber is thicker and it helps a bit with centering and I've heard that the stalk is shorter on the second gen, but I've never seen the two compared. I'm not sure which generation I have. Justin There was an early thread abot this, here are the pics or go to : http://www.atariage.com/forums/viewtopic.p...f535d77433893b4 and about the mushy buttons, there is a quite good improvment on the new BEST ELECTRONIC's gold version. Henry Lee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferris Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Thanks for the post. I've seen those pictures before in the other thread but I've never seen a side-by-side comparison of the two. Curt Vendel has a page on the 5200 Self-Centering Joystick... very interesting, you may want to check it out. http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/cons...00/5200joy.html Justin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobra Kai Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 I'm gonna disagree that a working 5200 stick is the best option....however I'll agree that it is better than the Wico controller....but nothing can compare to the Competition Pro Joystick for the 5200. Once I got one of these my high scores went up up and away! And no more hand cramps either And Im gonna disagree with you on the comp pro. To a point... The comp pro, for control is a good alternative, however the placing of the 2nd firing button makes games like Moon Patrol, Defender, hell, ANY game that needs the 2nd fire button totally unplayable. I tried training my right pinky to press it while holding onto the stick...no dice. I tried reaching my left hand around to the right without completely losing control of my direction...no dice. Now, that said...if you happen to get Donkey Kong either on a cart, or play the rom via the A52 Maxi cart...it's AWESOME! Almost as identical of an experience as playing the real thing as to Centipede with the trackball, or Robotron with the joystick coupler. Absolutely great! Ok you know what, I forgot to add that I'm left handed. Which means the way I hold the Comp Pro is I use my left hand for the joystick, and then I wrap my right hand on the controller so that my right thumb is used for the main fire button(the left one), and then my palm kinda naturally presses down the secondary fire button, it just takes a slight squeeze....I never really thought about how awkward it might be for a righty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferris Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Has anybody seen these original Atari Video System-X (5200) designs? The buttons were moved around a bit and appear as if they used to be solid plastic and not rubber. One of these is actually a design for the Atari 3200, the 10-Bit replacement for the 2600 which bit the dust in turn for the 5200 to come about. ^^^^^^^^^^Original Atari Video System-X Joystick. This would eventially evolve into the 5200's joystick after a slight reconfiguration. ^^^^^^^^^^Atari 3200 (Sylvia) Joystick. Original 10-Bit replacement for the 2600 which was to debut in 1980. This project was ditched in place for the 5200 as the 5200 was based off of existing 400/800 technology and the 3200 was simply too hard to program for at that time. ^^^^^^^^^^5200 Kid's Controller... ditched as the 5200 was not a "kids system" and no children's games were produced in conjunction. ^^^^^^^^^^CX52P Rubio Paddle ^^^^^^^^^^Look to the FAR LEFT of this image... you will see the original Atari Video System-X Controller. If you look closely you will notice that the fire buttons are very similar to those on the 7800. However an even closer look will reveal that these hard plastic buttons are divided right down the middle just as the 5200's rubber fire buttons were. Very very interesting. ...That's all for now. Hope you guys enjoyed these! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Cool pics. Thanks! I have to say that the 5200 has grown on me. Maybe it wasn't the most inspired idea Atari ever had, but its flaws give it character. -Bry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie_ Posted October 18, 2004 Share Posted October 18, 2004 Except for a few games like Pitfall... try to stay on those alligators. Hi. Actualy pressing the top joystick button makes Harry jump forward. This makes the alligators in the 5200 pifall very easy. Probably the easiest of any pitfall version. For me anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Lee Posted October 19, 2004 Author Share Posted October 19, 2004 Hi. Actualy pressing the top joystick button makes Harry jump forward. This makes the alligators in the 5200 pifall very easy. Probably the easiest of any pitfall version. For me anyway. You just filled by cavity with gold! I never knew, Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ApolloBoy Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 I actually kinda like the 5200 controllers. I originally thought they would be as bad as many people said, but in actuality, they aren't too bad. Mine seems to somewhat self-center due to the boot (I bought mine rebuilt). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Helmet Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 I actually kinda like the 5200 controllers. I originally thought they would be as bad as many people said, but in actuality, they aren't too bad. Mine seems to somewhat self-center due to the boot (I bought mine rebuilt). I agree. The 5200 stick isn't that bad when it is working properly. Could be worse (Colecovision or Intelivision...take your pick). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferris Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 It's interesting to note the "de-evolution" of game controllers between 1982 and 1986. The systems of 1982 (5200, Intellivision, Colecovision) all seemed to have large uncomforatable controllers with a number pad and multiple fire buttons. The 5200 was the most complex however the most comforatable. But compare that to the 7800's joystick. They brought it back down to two fire buttons. All of the systems of 1986 (7800, NES, SMS) consisted of a simple controller with two buttons. I believe this was part of what rebooted the game market. Interesting how controllers have continued to evolve but I have a feeling that at the moment the complexity is at a peak as it was in 1982.... my guess is the PS3 will carry on the same basic DualShock design while all other systems will not exceed where they are now. Infact I wouldnt be suprised to see a system with a simplified controller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 All of the systems of 1986 (7800, NES, SMS) consisted of a simple controller with two buttons. The NES has FOUR buttons. 2 fire buttons and 2 secondary action keys. If we wish to count the 7800 and SMS as less complex than the 5200 and Colecovision, I think we are clearly counting secondary action keys. And to be fair, the phone pad wasn't as great an idea as it looked on paper. It's not very useful in most games except for configuration, which is done in menus on more modern systems. I believe this was part of what rebooted the game market. Interesting how controllers have continued to evolve but I have a feeling that at the moment the complexity is at a peak as it was in 1982.... my guess is the PS3 will carry on the same basic DualShock design while all other systems will not exceed where they are now. Infact I wouldnt be suprised to see a system with a simplified controller.I expect the PS3 to keep the general control count, but re-arrange things. Thumbstick and d-pad swapped, maybe change the L2 and R2 buttons for trigger-style sliders. As for simplified... N64 to GameCube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsralph Posted October 24, 2004 Share Posted October 24, 2004 I actually kinda like the 5200 controllers. I originally thought they would be as bad as many people said, but in actuality, they aren't too bad. Mine seems to somewhat self-center due to the boot (I bought mine rebuilt). The boot will tear out at the center eventually, but with the gold dots and replacement boots, keeping them up nowadays is no problemo. Loved them when they first came out and still love them. Once you get used to them you can center them pretty well by feel. I still get a cheap thrill when I fake the opponent out in football and then reverse field and run a true 360 around them, ain't no other controller that can do that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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